In reply to Enyar :
excuse me but when you say across the state do you mean from the Atlantic side to the Gulf side sort of across the state?
Excuse my ignorance but couldn’t you do that via boat? Far enough south go around the tip, far enough north use the Intercoastal waterway?
it's not as easy as you'd think to cut across FL by boat. Locations are limited and it's a lot slower than doing it by vehicle. If your goal is to go fishing off the coast, hours and hours of slow canal navigation is time wasted when you could be bait down.
frenchyd said:In reply to Enyar :
excuse me but when you say across the state do you mean from the Atlantic side to the Gulf side sort of across the state?
Excuse my ignorance but couldn’t you do that via boat? Far enough south go around the tip, far enough north use the Intercoastal waterway?
Yeah, I live in Clearwater and for Bahamas trips we run out of Jupiter. Technically you could take the boat but the truck is faster and gets better MPG!
SVreX said:Uh oh...
Tow vehicle recommendations are getting dangerously close to construction and Cinderella castles...
I literally LOL'd at this comment. Thanks man!
So it seems the Ford v10's and Chevy 8.1 with 4.10 are great options if you don't want a diesel. Cheaper buy in as well.
Or buy a house on the water and be house broke and not be able to afford your boat or tow'er lololol
yupididit said:SVreX said:Uh oh...
Tow vehicle recommendations are getting dangerously close to construction and Cinderella castles...
I literally LOL'd at this comment. Thanks man!
Happy to oblige.
So glad you “get” me. (Insert some stupid cutesy emoji that GRM doesn’t have!)
My 2004 QS Suburban would be a fine tool for this job. I'll say however that while my commute is only 5 miles each way to work, I leave the beast parked in the driveway most of the time and take a knackered old Altima that is FULLY depreciated. Dailying the 'burb just feels wrong so I take the multi vehicle discount and dialed the "miles driven" part of my insurance down to just a couple thousand a year.
For me, unless I was a much richer man and able to afford really nice/new vehicles, having a spare car or two is well worth the minimal extra cost to register and insure them.
yupididit said:So it seems the Ford v10's and Chevy 8.1 with 4.10 are great options if you don't want a diesel. Cheaper buy in as well.
Or buy a house on the water and be house broke and not be able to afford your boat or tow'er lololol
I would have gone 8.1 burb given the preference, and 6.0 burb I would rate lower than the v10 ex but the ex's are cheaper than all 3/4ton burbs around here especially 2wd ones
In reply to ultraclyde : Thank you, my cruiser tops out at an indicated 40 mph but because of Speed restrictions in canals and etc it’s slightly faster to go from where I live to the opposite end of the lake by Car than boat even though the water route is much more direct.
I wondered if open ocean running offset freeway speeds. Plus the time it takes to launch etc. I know on some weekends it can take the whole morning to get a boat launched.
On the intercoastal waterway is there a speed limit or no wake rule?
SVreX said:yupididit said:SVreX said:Uh oh...
Tow vehicle recommendations are getting dangerously close to construction and Cinderella castles...
I literally LOL'd at this comment. Thanks man!
Happy to oblige.
So glad you “get” me. (Insert some stupid cutesy emoji that GRM doesn’t have!)
For the little bit that you're driving I'm thinking that a gas engined F250 or Chevy/GMC 2500 is a good option. The fuel mileage will be terrible and they won't pull hills as well as a diesel but I don't think either of those are real issues in your situation and you can get much nicer trucks for you dollar if you go with a gas engine.
SVreX said:In reply to Curtis :
I don’t mind you picking on me. You are much more knowledgeable than me on this, and I always learn something from you.
I will admit my knowledge is mostly anecdotal, but my experience is much different than yours.
I had an ‘08 Duramax. It cost me on average $1000 a month in repairs just to own it. Mostly electrical. My mechanic only did diesels (all types). He told me he made his entire living off Duramax electrical issues. Said they were very consistent- always issues.
i agree with you about a bulletproofed 6.0. Good truck. But Enyar is trying to buy an $8000 truck (in the North). That’s not the price point for a clean bullet proofed truck.
As far as stop and go traffic and low mileage driving, completely anecdotal. My 7.3L hates it. I have driven that truck 560,000 miles, and the ONLY time I’ve ever had issues with it was when I let it sit, or sat in traffic. Perhaps my truck was the only one on the planet that acted that way, but it certainly did.
At $8K with low annual usage needs, I think he needs a gas burner. Or a rental. Both will be cheaper than a diesel.
Kind words, thank you. I always learn from you as well.
You are right... $10k doesn't buy much of a diesel truck these days.
STM317 said:In reply to Curtis :
The issues that people encounter with diesels aren't related to fuel type, or injection systems. The bad reputation comes from issues related to the emissions controls. Not sure what year your Duramaxes have been, but the other engines you mentioned are pre-emissions, and are a much simpler beast than an 08+ trucks with EGR, DPFs, and SCR/urea injection systems. If most or all of your experience comes from diesels that are 10+ years old, then your opinion makes sense, but it may not apply to more modern diesels.
These new trucks can absolutely struggle as daily drivers and mall crawlers. They make 900ft-lbs with a warranty. Thats not to putt around, they're made to perform their best while doing hard work. Everything about the design expects to be used under working conditions, so they quickly become less than optimal just hauling 200lbs of driver around on fairly short commutes. I can go into more detail if you'd like, but OP probably won't have a ton of these trucks available within his budget.
I'm not sure I completely agree with the "struggle as daily drivers" part but our two Dmaxes are an 04 and an 08. So the later one has a DPF but do DEF. The 04 is heavily modded and puts 938 torques to the wheels and its a daily driver and tow pig in the summer. Almost 175k on it last time I checked. Cranked up to the fifth position, it will get sideways at 65 mph on the highway. Big grins. It is not the nicest riding truck (3/4 ton crew cab short bed) but it is nicely optioned, so it is kinda cowboy cadillac. It parks pretty easily and I don't mind it as a DD... at least no more than I minded my F150 5.4L
But again, you're right... not too many diesels in his price range that aren't clapped out.
In your price range, I'd also be tempted to go with a cheap gas truck and keep your DD. When I was doing heavy towing, I bought a Mid 90s Ford with a 460. It towed perfectly. Buy in was $3k. It took minimal maintenance during the time I owned it. It got abysmal fuel economy, but the buy in was low enough to buy a lot of gas. It would sit for months at a time and fire up every time without issue. I didn't drive it enough to worry about the gas mileage. It wasn't my DD.
A gas engine at the bottom of its deprecation curve is going to be a lot cheaper to buy and to keep running than a diesel at the bottom of its curve. Diesel trucks around here seem to bottom out around $10K unless they need major work to get on the road. Gas trucks routinely get down into the $2500-$5k range.
Purley anecdotal but two of my friends have been dealing with stock 6.0 powerstroke problems for the past couple years while another has an 8.1 3500 Chevy which aside from a recent occasional misfire has been great. Theirs were purchased in the teens and the gaser was $4k.
The cost of repairs (even DIY) and headaches have not outwieghed the 5 or so mpg advantage of the 8.1 which also tows like a beast.
93gsxturbo said:Suburbans and Avalanches could be had in a 2500 variant that are just a hair under 10,000 lbs for towing. Should be OK with brake controller, weight distributing hitch, and air bags in back. Can be had with an 8.1 or a 6.(x) depending on the year. They are shorter than a crew cab/short box anything.
Otherwise I would run far and fast from anything with a pre -06 Derpamax or anything in your pricerange but a Ford with a 7.3 in it. Doubt you will find any decent late duramaxes or 7.3 F250s in your price range.
Dodge Ram with a Cummins is a choice, unfortunately everything but the motor will suck.
Chevys have a lower step in height and a better ride, Fords have a nicer interior and better visibility. Pick your favorite and buy the most grandpa fresh version you can find.
I loved my 02 Duramax powered k3500. Yes, they will need injectors, so you have to just understand that and plan for it, otherwise it was a great and reliable truck. I now have a 2013 duramax powered k3500, and it’s fantastic, but I still have a soft spot for the 03.
Well as of now I will be completely ignoring almost everyone's advice and buying a 2013 Tundra with 140k. The diesel talk scared me and I think I overstated teh amount of towing I will actually be doing. Time will tell.
If you felt like a drive to CO there's a GRMer selling a 2500 Suburban with fewer miles that's damn cool.... https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/open-classifieds/1989-suburban-2500-4000/141310/page1/
Frenchyd - There's not a universal speed limit on the ICW as far as I'm aware but of course a lot of it is around structures, particularly in FL, so you get the no-wake thing. Plus, in FL, manatee areas.
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